If you follow me on twitter you might’ve heard I had an i-Lipo session earlier today. It sparked a bit of a flurry in that everyone had loads of questions and this is where I hope to answer them.

In a nutshell, i-Lipo is a brand of laser lipo. It involves strapping pads to your jiggly bits so they can emit a low-level laser into your fat cells. This laser makes them more permeable so the fat can transfer through the cell wall into the surrounding tissues. Once this is done, you’ll immediately see a loss in centimetres BUT you still need to do 30 minutes of cardio as soon as possible after your treatment to ensure that the ‘liquidized’ fat gets burned up and excreted in your pee. (This isn’t the nicest explanation, I know, but I want to make it as simple as possible so you understand the concept.) If you don’t burn it up, it’ll just slip back into your cells and you’ll be back to where you started.

The i-Lipo machine

Another way to explain it? Imagine your fat cells like grapes. The laser makes the skin of your ‘grapes’ temporarily porous so the fluid (fat) inside of them can drain out. Your grapes, however, remain intact, so if you continue to go big at the buffet, you’ll fill them up again. It’s pretty much how normal ‘natural’ weight loss occurs; your fat cells don’t disappear, they just get smaller. Because of this, laser lipo is the only type of ‘lipo’ I’d ever consider. I’d be very nervy about going under the knife and having my fat cells permanently sucked out because then, when you put the weight back on, it can’t go back to the spot you treated, just the surrounding areas, which can leave you with a weird-looking contour.

Anyway, as laser lipo’s been performed safelyfor years outside of SAand performed by thousands of knowledgeable docs, surgeons and aestheticians across the globe, I didn’t hesitate to accept when offered a few i-Lipo sessions at Skin & Body Renewal in the Cape Quarter. I’d also chatted to a host of local beauty editors and bloggers who’ve given it a bash and all of them RAVED about their results. On top of all this, I’d cultivated a merry li’l ‘muffin top’ to give it a run for it’s money…

Every winter I pack on a good 2kgs. Getting rid of it before summer is never an issue. I just cut down on my kilojoule intake and step it up in the gym. Now, however, I’m a bit pressed for time as I’m off to St Tropez slap bang in the middle of next month. Eeek! Thus, I popped off to the clinic wearing the tightest jeans I own; my ‘summer skinny legs’ that I haven’t been able to fit into in months. In fact, they were so tight on me that I couldn’t sit down in them without undoing the zip!

After chatting to the clinic’s doctor (Dr. Bianca Le Feuvre), she ascertained that I was a good candidate for the treatment. (Most people are, but she just wanted to check that I wasn’t pregnant or didn’t have some kind of prohibitive condition.) I then went through to a little room where my therapist, Dourina, took my measurements and snapped a few ‘before’ piccies:

See my little muffin top?

Next, I got to lie down on a table while the laser pads were strapped around my middle.

Right! My flab’s good to go!

Dourina then cranked up the machine and that’s how I lay for a good twenty minutes. What did it feel like? Like nothing. Seriously. I didn’t feel a tingle, a change in temperature, nothing… I was, however, given a head and a foot massage which felt AMAZING! .

Afterwards, Dourina whipped out a special attachment to the machine called an Ultra. It felt like a mini Dustbuster on my skin and was used for ten minutes or so to perform a ‘draining massage’. This was to encourage the now liquified fat that was hanging out in my tissue to move towards the lymph glands in my groin. This costs extra and isn’t necessary for your i-Lipo to be effective but it does boost the results so the clinic recommends you spring for it if you want to bump up your fat loss.

Once that was done, I got up and Dourina whipped out the measuring tape. Lo and behold, I’d lost a whopping 4cm around the hips! Niiiice! Still, being a regte skeptic, a part of me couldn’t help but wonder if she wasn’t perhaps just holding the tape measure a little differently… or possibly pulling it a bit tighter than she had beforehand… Because of that, that’s why I’d made a point of wearing those crazy-toit super uncomfy jeans. I wanted to put them back on and see if they fitted any better. And guess what? They did! Not only was I able to pull them on without jumping up and down to get into them (as was the case that morning), they actually slid down a bit to expose my undies! Squeeeaaallll!

Now I can even sit down in them without having to undo the zip! OMG!

I then left the clinic to go do a minimum of 30 minutes of cardio (I hit up my exercise bike) as, like I said, you need to burn up the ‘floating fat’ so it gets excreted rather than reabsorb into your fat cells. Afterwards, I drank a whole whopload of water (three glasses) to see if it’s wasn’t perhaps ‘water weight’ that I’d lost and lo and behold, five hours later I’m still sitting pretty in my skinnies!

Anyway, I’m now BEYOND excited to do a few more sessions. I literally lost an amount of weight that would’ve taken me a week with careful diet and exercise in a matter of minutes! In fact, the last time I was this impressed with a cosmetic treatment was when I first had Botox.

Want to give it a bash yourself? I had my treatment at Skin Renewal in the Cape Quarter but there are loads of other salons offering the treatment both in Cape Town and around the country. If you click here, you can find one in your area. Price-wise, Skin Renewal is charging a mere R375 per session. This may vary from salon to salon. On top of the i-Lipo, I also had the Ultra used on me; this was an extra R125.

If you go, or have gone, please feel free to leave a comment. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts.

P.S. I just had someone ask me ‘how long it lasts’ via twitter. It’s just like with any other type of weight loss; it lasts for as long as you decide to keep it off. If you stick to a kilojoule-controlled diet or simply burn more kilojoules than you eat, you’re going to remain a skinny Minnie. If you decide to run off with your newly slim tum and binge eat McDonalds all day, you’ll start to gain weight once more. The choice is up to you. In short, i-Lipo is a great way to shift a small to medium amount of weight in record time. And, when used in conjunction with a negative calorie deficit diet, you’ll lose weight even faster!

I was so skeptical I told the PR agency not to bother booking me multiple treatments. Thought just one would be enough of a waste of my time. Now I want to buy bloody shares in the company. Please let me know how your treatments go via the comments section. Would love to hear about your results x x

My word, your lil’ muffin-top just got eaten up by that funky little machine! I think I’ll give it a blast, my “mushroom top” needs harvesting and I’m hoping they can help me out. I KNOW there are abs in there somewhere, I just know it! 😀

Unbelieveable! The commercial site of i Lipo describes exactly what you experienced but i couldn’t believe all this was so true! Are you willing to give me permission to include your story in my new thread of Consumer Testimonials, in my site Lipoadvisor.com ?

What I would love to know is if the i-lipo or laser lipo is the same as ultrasonic lipo??? Im trying to decide who to book with because the ultrasonic seems to be a heck of a lot cheaper? Im too clued up about all this! Pls help! 🙂 Kayla

Oh gosh. I do remember them weighing me every time but I didn’t pay any attention to it. I was only interested in centimeter loss. While you’ll lose weight with iLipo, it’s more about shifting pockets of fat in certain areas that’ll make a big difference to your silhouette.

Just curious. I’ve been lookin at this stuff for months because they have this EVERYWHERE in Vegas (because we are all so vain lol) and thinkin about it for myself and my gf. Do you know of any differences in results for women vs. men?

Hi Leigh! So, after my first treatment (concentrating on the tummy area), I had lost 10 cm. The i-Lipo treatments are followed every time by a 30 min (very relaxing) FIR Sauna blanket session. This ensures that you burn the calories being released back into your system when your fat cells are ‘shrunk’.
I also had a lymphatic drainage massage (ouch!) the next day, and after my second treatment, had lost another 9 cm, even though the therapist told me that I could expect a loss of 3-4 cm per session. After the third treatment, I had lost another 7 cm. 🙂 All this happened during the course of one week.
People are now starting to comment that I have lost weight (although they don’t know about my ‘secret weapon’) 🙂
Will be going for my 4th treatment this afternoon. I have been good though, in that I still do at least 30 min of moderate exercise (power walking or swimming) every day, and of course I try to cut back on sweets, etc.

Linda, that’s fantastic! So glad you’re getting good results. iLipo really does work and I can’t stand it when people say ‘oh, well clearly those 30 mins of cardio worked it off’. I don’t know about you but I’ve never got off an exercise bike and found I was suddenly missing 6 cm around my waist 🙂

Anyway, thrilled you’re happy. I might be going back too if I can’t shift a few stubborn centimeters on my own in enough time for bikini season.

I am trying out i-lipo tomorrow 6 August and signed up a 26-session treatment programme. Was honestly skeptical about what the “clinic” said it will offer but after reading your review, am quite relieved and pleased. Thanks for informing us on the post treatment as well like doing a 30 minute exercise and the need to drain the fat into the groin area. ….

Male, 27yrs old. Undergoing 2 visits per week, for 4-8 weeks. I-Lipo, Carboxytheraphy & Ultra Theraphy Treatments at Cape Town, Skin Renewal Cape Quater. At my second second treatment. I-Lipo and Ultra is Painless. Just lay and relax for 30min. Carboxytheraphy a bit stingy, as needles are injected with Carbon Dioxide. But with research, and a Professional consultation, the 3 theraphy’s work awesome together, if one wants to see long lasting results. My problem: Big Bum and Thighs with fatty pockets and a bit of cellulite. Lost 3cm, skin is tightening amazingly, and all this just after TWO treatments. Looking forward to seeing the end results.

So glad to hear you’re getting good results. Skin & Body Renewal are fabulous and if I can’t shift my ‘launch belly’ in time for bikini weather I’ll definitely go back for more iLipo. It worked like a bomb.

hi,
i am very thin but unfortunately i have fat in places that i don’ t want i found an offer of 3 treatments and i am wondering if the problem is not so big if these 3 sessions will be enough or at least to see a difference.

Sorry for the slow reply, this got lost in the mix while I was on holiday. It would probably work best on fat dense places like your tummy etc. Ankles and calves often don’t boast too much fat but lots of tissue and muscle. For example, I have big ankles too but you can’t really zap them as most of what makes them large is ‘meat’, not fat. It still wouldn’t hurt to get a consultation though. Most salons would do this for free.

Hi Sam! Yep, I definitely gained the weight back but only ‘cos I really, really like my vino. With i-Lipo, you’re burning fat the same way you would on any diet – emptying the cells, not destroying them. So you if you don’t change your eating habits or step up the exercise you will pick up the weight again but it’ll be evenly distributed.

There’s no ‘right’ weight but you’ll get the best results if you’re close to your goal weight but struggling with the odd stubborn fat pocket or fatty area. Ideally, you want to use it to sculpt and refine as opposed to a weight loss method to replace a good diet and exercise.

I think the price would vary from country to country. Are you from South Africa? Here you’re looking at about R350 to R500 or so for a session. You’ll lose a few grams of fat each time but only really see a visible difference after treatment four or five.

Hey, Thanks for responding.I’m from North Carolina.I saw a ad in the newspaper for the initial visit and consultation the price was $95.00. I was thinking that price had to be just to get you in the door. I no it has to be a lot higher.

Is your name Leigh or Lindsay? As the VB Laser Trim Clinic has plagiarized part of your review above, word for word. Those (very contrived) reviews and your repetitive review, have left me very skeptical!

I’m Leigh and that’s shocking. Will check it out the moment I get home and send them a mail demanding they remove it or they’ll hear from my lawyer. Feel free to mail me via the contact me page of my blog and I’ll what’s app you a photo of my face to prove I’m legit. My review is 100 percent real.

Hi Julie! It depends on the salon. Some offer it together, some apart. But it’s definitely two different things. Personally, I found I got better results the first time I did iLipo using the Ultra machine. I had a few sessions the other day that I paid for but didn’t spring for Ultra and while it still worked, I felt I lost more centimetres the first time round.

Thanks for that 😉 I-lipo is best for anyone who’s struggling with a few stubborn centimetres. If you booked a consultation with a lot of weight to lose they’d probably advise you get rid of as many kilos as you can via diet and exercise and than blitz the remainder with around 8 or so i-Lipo sessions.

I’m thin myself like you, and am concerned that when i gain a couple pounds back that the fat is going to distribute in some new place? I also got nervous that the fat cells are floating around and can attach to other places after treatment. Is this correct from your experience?

Hi Crystal! I had these same fears too but there’s zero chance the fat will distribute unevenly when you put on again. This is because ilipo doesn’t destroy the fat cells – it just drains them, the same way exercise does.

Hi Amanda! Yep, I’ve gained and lost and gained and lost. Laser lipo essentially drains out your fat cells the same way exercise and diet would. So when you start over eating again or stop exercising or whatever the weight returns. This is why laser is a great way to drop centimetres fast and in a targeted area, but not a permanent solution.

My Dr told me that I should use vaser liposuction only for reshaping and I am going to reshape my waistline next week. I am so glad that I have found your post while I was searching for additional information. You look amazing on your photos. Greetings!